Eating processed meat has been linked with an increased risk of developing dementia, say researchers exploring a potential link between consumption of meat and development of dementia.

But their findings also show eating some unprocessed red meat, such as beef, pork or veal, could be protective, as people who consumed 50g a day were 19% less likely to develop dementia. 

The researchers were exploring whether there is a link between consumption of meat and development of dementia, a health condition which affects 5%-8% of over 60s worldwide.

Their results, titled Meat consumption and risk of incident dementia: cohort study of 493,888 UK Biobank participants, are published today in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Lead researcher Huifeng Zhang, a PhD student from Leeds’ School of Food Science and Nutrition, said: «Worldwide, the prevalence of dementia is increasing and diet as a modifiable factor could play a role.

«Our research adds to the growing body of evidence linking processed meat consumption to increased risk of a range of non-transmissible diseases.» 

The research was supervised by Professors Janet Cade and Laura Hardie, both at Leeds.

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